


Stains & Pains

by SailorChibi



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Age Play, Baby Peter, Baby Tony, Bathing, Carrying, Crying, Cuddling, Daddy Steve, Diapers, Domestic Avengers, Everything's happy and nothing hurts, Gen, Hugging, Infantilism, Little Bucky, Little Peter, Minor Peggy Carter/Angie Martinelli, Pacifiers, Protective Bucky Barnes, Steve is in way over his head, Team as Family, alternate universe - littles are known, baby Loki, bucky barnes enjoys finger painting, clint barton does not like the time out chair, daycare centers, good big brother bucky barnes, in reality he cares a lot, little Tony, little clint, little loki, little natasha, loki pretends he doesn't care, mommy peggy, non sexual age play, non sexual infantilism, pull-ups, tantrums, thumb sucking, time out chair as punishment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-16
Packaged: 2019-03-26 05:31:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13851120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorChibi/pseuds/SailorChibi
Summary: Sometimes Steve wondered what he was thinking, opening up a daycare center while also finishing up some construction. Littles get intoeverything.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A while ago I did this thing on tumblr where people sent you fic titles and I came up with fics to go along with them. This was one of those.

If there was one question that Steve Rogers asked himself on a daily basis, it would be this: what the hell had he and Peggy been thinking when they decided to open up a daycare center for Littles?

Well, he knew what they’d been thinking. Finding a daycare that would accept Bucky _and_ Tony had been next to impossible. Most daycares were happy to accept Littles that were categorized as little kids, big kids, pre-teens, or teens. Toddlers like Bucky were a little more iffy, but you could find somewhere that would take a toddler without too much trouble. Babies like Tony, though? Closed doors everywhere Steve asked.

It was immensely frustrating. Tony was the sweetest baby that Steve had ever met. He rarely threw temper tantrums or had meltdowns like some babies did. Actually, the only real problem that Tony had was his _lack_ of reaction: he was more inclined to try and hide it if something was wrong. Many times Steve had walked into Tony’s nursery to find the baby silently crying from either an empty tummy or a soiled diaper; fortunately, the video cam baby monitor he and Peggy had bought had worked wonders.

Littles who were babies were more work, it was true - but they would've been more than willing to pay extra had there been anyone willing to take on that work. An extra fifty or a hundred bucks a month would've been cheaper than opening up a daycare center at any rate. Then again, once Peggy got an idea in her head there was no stopping her, which was why Steve was staring down at a bunch of caregivers and Littles.

"Steve! We're open! Get down here!" Peggy yelled up the stairs. Steve winced a little but sighed, heading towards the door. He'd been sent upstairs to the office to grab some forms, but he'd gotten distracted. He picked up the forms and stepped out of the office, pulling the door shut behind him and pausing long enough to make sure that the Little-proof latch had caught. 

"Hey man, did you guys ever decide on a color for the back stairs?" Sam asked as Steve came down the stairs. Even though it was only half past eight in the morning, there was already a streak of white paint across Sam's forehead.

That was the other part of this madness. The building wasn't entirely ready yet, so Sam's construction team was going to be working on some finishing touches even though the daycare was already open. Angie had warned them that they should push back the opening date by a couple weeks, but he and Peggy had been so determined to have the center open on schedule. Steve regretted that burst of stubbornness now. 

"I think we went with red," Steve said, trying to remember. "Or maybe it was brown. Sorry, Sam. You'll have to double check with Peggy or Angie."

"You're the artist," Sam said, looking like he was trying not to smile.

"I am, and I got the honor of putting up all the artwork. Angie picked out all the other colors," Steve replied. It was a job he'd been happy to leave to her. Picking out paint colors was _boring_. He really did not care if the Baby Room was painted yellow or pink, or whether the Big Kid Room had teal or blue accents.

"I'll check with Angie, then. Any idea where she is?"

"Try the front room. She's probably with Peggy," Steve said, just as he heard the sound of a very familiar wail. He hurried away from Sam with an apologetic wave, pushing open the door to the Toddler Room, and found Bucky and Tony. Tony was sitting on the ground, hands clasped over his ears, shivering. Bucky was kneeling next to him, arms around Tony. Both of them were crying. 

"Daddy, make them go away!" Bucky cried, staring at Steve with teary grey-blue eyes. "Tony scared!"

Steve sighed. "I can't make them go away, bud. These are your new friends, remember?" He walked over and scooped Tony up, letting the baby burrow into his throat. Tony didn't handle crowds very well; he got overwhelmed easily. Having Bucky around was usually enough to help, but not when Bucky was also scared. 

"New friends?" Bucky repeated, looking past Steve to the door.

"That's right. And some old friends too. Clint and Tasha should be here any minute. You know how much you love playing with them," Steve said, shifting Tony's weight to one arm so that he could lean down and pick Bucky up with the other. He was never more grateful for the increased strength that caregivers possessed than he was when his boys were upset. 

Bucky frowned, clearly torn between crying some more or being excited about playtime. "When?"

"Well, it's... Uh..." Steve trailed off, trying to shift the boys around to see his watch.

"It's 8:36," Sam said behind him, having followed Steve to see what was going on. He smiled at Bucky. "How would you like to help me do some painting until your friends arrive?" He cupped a hand around his mouth and whispered, exaggeratedly loud, "I'll let you get all messy when your mommy and daddy aren't looking."

Bucky's eyes lit up and he let go of Steve, reaching both arms towards Sam with an eager whine. Steve tried not to groan, already envisioning the long bath Bucky was going to have to have tonight. Sam just grinned at him and held his arms out for Bucky, easily taking the Little's weight. He walked out of the room with Bucky and left Steve standing there with Tony.

"Your mommy is doing bath time tonight," Steve muttered, nuzzling Tony's hair. It was soft and smelled sweet thanks to the shampoo that Peggy liked to buy. 

"No bath," Tony said, his voice thin and wobbly, and Steve's heart ached. Tony had a terrible fear of water. He was better about it now, after almost two years with Steve and Peggy, but Steve still had to climb into the bathtub with him in order to wash Tony's hair, and they still couldn't have the tub more than half full of water. They'd learned the hard way what happened if they didn't: Tony would either have a panic attack, or he would just shut down.

Neither of them knew why. The thin file that had accompanied Tony gave precious few details, and, although Tony spoke more than he had when he came to them, he never talked about his parents or what had happened to him before he became a Rogers. Like Bucky, Tony's life had started over on the day that Steve and Peggy officially adopted him.

He shifted Tony's weight and hugged him. "Not right now," he promised. "How about we go see what Mommy and Aunt Angie are doing?"

Tony thought about this and then nodded, one small hand clutching Steve's neck, the other curled near his mouth so that he could suck on his thumb. Steve carried him out of the room and headed for the front of the center. It was no wonder that Tony and Bucky had gotten overwhelmed: the room, which had felt large when Steve first saw it, now seemed cramped thanks to how many caregivers and Littles were crammed inside.

Angie was processing people as quickly as she could, passing the Littles off to the correct employee and letting Peggy usher caregivers out the doors. In spite of the fact that Peggy had called for him, Steve hung back. She and Angie were a dynamic duo, working together effortlessly after long years as friends and business associates. They cleared the room in under fifteen minutes, far faster than they would've had Steve bundled in.

"Whew! I wasn't expecting so many people to come at once," Angie said once the room was empty except for the four of them. She wiped a hand across her forehead, then gathered her hair up in a ponytail and fastened it with the elastic she always wore around her wrist.

"Ma," Tony said shyly, and both Peggy and Angie turned to look at the same time. Peggy's face melted into a smile and she walked over to them.

"Hello, sweetheart," she said, crowding in close so that Tony was pressed between them. He always loved that. "Were you keeping your daddy from helping us? Or was Daddy hiding?" She gave Steve a look, but her eyes were crinkling with amusement so Steve just grinned.

"I think it's been a bit too much for someone," Steve replied. "I'm glad I'm taking the Baby Room for the next few days." Well, him and Darcy. She was going to be his part-time assistant, splitting her time between helping Steve and helping Betty, who was in charge of the Toddler Room. Steve would need as much of Darcy's help as he could get. Otherwise, he would've had Tony and two others babies, Peter Parker and Loki Laufeyson, to deal with all by himself. That was asking more than any one man could give.

Peggy nodded. "For a few days," she said lightly, teasingly, and Steve mock-scowled at her.

"You know I'm supposed to be training Darcy to take the Room full time," he said, but half-heartedly at best. That was what they'd hired Darcy on for, after all. Ultimately, Steve was supposed to be using his Business degree to help Angie keep the center running behind the scenes.

It wasn't Steve's fault that, out of all the classification ages, he was best suited to care for baby Littles. There was just something about a baby that pulled at his soul. It killed him to hear a Little cry and not be able to do something about it, and babies were simple: a diaper change, a bottle feeding, a hug or rocking them to sleep. It was easy to make babies happy and Steve _lived_ for that feeling of accomplishment.

Peggy was best suited for toddlers, but she would be dividing her time between the Little Kid Room and Big Kid Room. Angie was a neutral, not a caregiver, which was why she was more interested in taking care of the business side of the center. She had done all of the hiring for the center and all of the marketing. Without her, the center might not have got off the ground at all.

"You know, Darcy mentioned that she was thinking of going back to school for a Business degree," Angie said causally, picking up her tablet. She marked a few things off and then looked up with a twinkle in her eye. "She's already helped a lot with the website. If you were ever interested in trading places, I wouldn't object."

Steve was about to answer, but at that moment the door opened again and Thor came in with Loki on his hip. Steve passed Tony off to Peggy, knowing that she would take Tony back to Darcy, and walked over. Loki was the opposite of Tony: he wasn't shy at all, and in fact looked at Steve with an imperious little smile on his face. He pushed himself away from Thor _and_ Steve, squirming until Thor set him down. Loki toddled unsteadily away from them both.

Thor shrugged, a sheepish smile on his face. "Loki is his own man," he said, handing Steve a green diaper bag. "He doesn't like to be carried by anyone other than me. I wouldn't suggest you pick him up if you can avoid it." He paused, then added, "He also doesn't like riding in strollers. If you go for a walk, he likes to walk."

"Wonderful," Steve said, while privately wondering just what he had signed himself up for. Maybe it would be better to work with Angie. 

"Loki, Daddy is leaving!" Thor called.

Loki ignored him. Thor sighed and shrugged again and left. He didn't look back, so Steve was the only one who saw Loki's face crumble when Thor walked out the door. A moment later, Loki realized Steve was watching him. The tears vanished and Loki scowled fiercely, glaring at him. Steve gulped and glanced at Angie, who put her hands up as though to say 'don't look at me'. 

It was going to be a long day.


	2. Chapter 2

Steve took the babies into their room and shut the door, hoping that a few minutes away from the rest of the commotion might calm them both down. He stood in the middle of the room and rubbed Tony’s back, watching as Loki toddled around exploring. They’d stocked the room with several stuffed toys and other baby games, all of them sized for Littles. Loki stumbled across a green turtle and stared at it critically for a long moment before he snatched it up, cradling it to his chest.

“That’s a good choice, buddy,” Steve said. Loki started, as though he’d forgotten Steve was there. He frowned at Steve, one hand wrapped protectively around the turtle’s head, like he thought Steve might take it away. Steve ignored that in favor of glancing at his watch. It was just past nine, so it was time for the babies to have a bottle and a little snack before they went down for their mid-morning nap at ten.

He and Peggy had invested in three high chairs, with the thought that they would purchase more later if necessary. He unwound Tony’s legs from around his waist and plunked Tony into the closest high chair. Tony whimpered, reaching for him. When Steve didn’t pick him up and instead strapped him in, Tony wiggled, realized he couldn’t get free, and began to cry. 

Behind Steve, Loki also started to cry. Steve closed his eyes briefly in a bid for patience, then turned around to look at Loki. “What’s the matter?” he asked gently, picking Loki up. The baby whined and squirmed.

“No! No no no!” Loki cried, fighting Steve’s grip.

“I know, you don’t like being carried by anyone other than your daddy. Here.” Steve slipped him into the high chair beside Tony and strapped him in; he had the feeling that, given the chance, Loki would make a break for it. The two babies looked at other warily. 

“Darcy!” Steve called, hoping she was close enough to answer. He didn’t feel comfortable leaving Tony and Loki alone in the room while he went to get their food.

Darcy poked her head into the room. “You rang?”

“It’s snack time.”

“Might as well prepare three then,” Darcy said, walking in. She was holding another Little in her arms. Peter Parker was, thankfully, all bright eyes and smiles behind the red pacifier he was sucking on, looking around the room with interest. His eyes landed on Loki and Tony, who were still crying. Steve half-expected Peter to start crying too, but Peter just blinked at them.

“Hello there, little man,” Steve said, taking Peter. Peter babbled something and threw his arms around Steve’s neck.

“No!” Tony said, voice high. “Dada! Mine!”

“I’m still yours, sweetie,” Steve told him. “But it’s just like with Bucky: you need to share Daddy sometimes.”

“No,” Tony whined.

“No! No no no no!” Loki chimed in, rocking against the high chair.

Darcy looked like she wanted to laugh. “Why don’t you go get things ready, and I’ll stay here with the babies?”

“Thanks,” Steve said. It felt a little like he was fleeing the room as he left, but he couldn’t help it. He didn’t know why he hadn’t anticipated earlier that Tony might be jealous, or that some of the Littles might not be happy at being away from their caregivers. It was harder than he’d expected to see them cry. 

He went into the small kitchenette and made up three bottles, two of which he made using the formula that Thor and Wade had dropped off with Loki and Peter. Angie had asked for allergy lists ahead of time; thankfully, Loki wasn’t allergic to anything and Peter’s only allergy was to peppers. While he was mashing up three bananas, Betty walked in. 

“How’s the first morning going?” she asked with a smile, reaching for the fridge door.

“It’s hectic. Tony’s jealous and Loki isn’t happy,” Steve said. “How’s Bruce doing?”

Betty pulled out a bottle of juice. “He’s okay. I don’t think he’s thrilled, but we had another talk this morning about sharing. I managed to convince him that being at daycare with me was a _good_ thing, because it means he’ll have lots of friends. It helps that he already knows Clint and Bucky, and Peter and Scott seem like very sweet kids.”

Steve nodded. “And Sam is around, which helps Scott feel more comfortable,” he pointed out. Sam had agreed that his construction company would do the work at a discount if Scott was accepted into the daycare. That had been a no-brainer for Steve.

“That too.” She poured the juice into four sippy cups. “Maybe later we can take them out into the yard. Bucky loved helping Sam out this morning.”

“It would probably do Tony good to spend some time with Bucky. They’ll be done their naps around 11am, so maybe then?”

“Sounds good,” Betty said. “Best of luck.” 

“Thanks,” Steve said, picking up the bowls and bottles. He carried them back to the Baby Room and found a markedly different atmosphere: Loki was smiling now, looking up at Darcy with an expression that bordered on worship. Tony wasn’t smiling, but he wasn’t crying either. 

“Here we go. Bananas and milk,” Steve announced. “Who do you want to feed?”

“I’ll take this little guy,” Darcy said, chucking Loki under the chin. “I don’t think Tony would be impressed if I tried to feed him.” She grinned at Tony, who pouted.

“Probably not. Here.” Steve passed over Loki’s food and stood in front of Tony and Peter. He picked up the spoons and scooped a little banana into each baby’s mouth, pleased when both of them swallowed without protest. Darcy, on the other hand, had to tickle Loki to get him to open his mouth, though Loki did eat after tasting the banana.

When the bananas were all gone, Steve took out the bottles. Loki staunchly refused any help, grabbing his bottle and twisting away with an annoyed grunt when Darcy tried to help him. Darcy shrugged and gave up, holding the bottle for Peter instead. That left Steve free to feed Tony, which was always a challenge when Tony was sleepy: he was more interested in sleeping than drinking.

“C’mere, baby,” Steve whispered, lifting Tony out of the chair. In lieu of cribs, they planned to put the babies on soft mats on the floor. Steve laid Tony down and covered him up with a blanket. A pacifier and Tony’s favorite stuffed toy, a giraffe, later, and Tony was out like a light. The morning had been hard for him. Steve pressed a kiss to his forehead before he got up to help Darcy.

Loki went down surprisingly easily as well. Peter proved to be more of a challenge, refusing to settle down long enough to sleep. Steve finally took him and sat down in a rocking chair. More than twenty minutes after Tony and Loki had fallen asleep, Peter drifted off. Very carefully, Steve got up and laid him down on the floor with the other two babies.

“Whew,” Darcy whispered. “I’m going to go check in with Betty, okay?”

“Go ahead,” Steve whispered back. Betty would probably need help putting four rambunctious toddlers down. He didn’t envy her.

He sat down again and took out his phone, content to pass the hour until it would be time to wake the babies up. Angie had sent out a few updates to the staff’s email, he noticed. The daycare had done well considering that their money for marketing had been limited, and that they were trying to market themselves as a daycare geared towards younger Littles. They had three babies, five toddlers, six little kids and five big kids. He was positive that, given time, they would have a lot more interest.

He daydreamed for a little while about what that might be like: maybe, in a few year’s time, they would have the money and capacity to expand. Sam would build them an expansion for the right money. They would have to hire more staff, but he was confident they’d be able to find the right people. Maybe Phil, Natasha’s and Clint’s dad, could be convinced to finally quit his boring government job and come work for the daycare instead.

Or maybe they would move instead. That wouldn’t solve the staff issue, but it would mean they didn’t have to worry about construction or even temporarily closing the center. Steve would hate to do that, though. He’d spent a lot of time painting murals on the walls of the rooms, and he knew Peggy and Angie had spent a lot of time buying furniture. They’d customized this building to be a home away from home for the Littles.

A soft sound broke Steve out of his thoughts. He leaned forward, realizing that Tony was watching him. “Hey you. Did you have a good nap?”

Tony nodded, rubbing at his eyes. He looked like he could fall back asleep, but Steve knew better than to let that happen: Tony would never sleep at night if he got too much sleep during the day. He got up and fetched the diaper bag he’d packed for Tony, knowing that Tony would be wet after a nap, then knelt on the floor. The cold touch of baby wipes woke Tony up in a hurry, and Steve had to hide a smile at the glare he got.

Loki woke up about five minutes after Tony. He was far less willing to let Steve change his diaper, kicking his feet and waving his hands and struggling to squirm away. Unfortunately for Loki, Steve was used to dealing with Bucky. Every once in a while Bucky needed to be put into diapers instead of pull-ups, and he hated diapers with a passion. Steve knew every trick in the book for a wiggly, squirmy Little and in no time at all, he had Loki in a fresh diaper.

When Peter woke up he was, thankfully, still dry. Steve washed his hands and then looked over the three Littles. He remembered Betty's suggestion about going outside and figured it would be a wise choice. Some fresh air would probably do all four of them a world of good, and one of the first things Sam's crew had done was build a fence around the playground so that they didn't have to worry about anyone running away.

"Who wants to go outside?" Steve asked, clapping his hands.

"Outside?" Peter repeated, eyes lighting up. "Swing?"

"Sure, buddy. We can play on the swings," Steve agreed. Tony loved the swings too. Maybe Darcy would take Loki for a walk around the yard while he pushed Peter and Tony.

"No," Loki said.

"No? Why not?"

Loki narrowed his eyes. "No."

It was a toss-up as to whether Loki genuinely didn't want to go outside, or whether he was just feeling contrary and would've said no to everything Steve suggested. Thor had warned them that Loki's favorite word was 'no'. With that in mind, Steve scooped up Tony in one arm and Peter in the other. Both of them felt ridiculously tiny, like their weight combined didn't match someone like Bucky or Clint. 

"You can stay here and play then," Steve said calmly. "Or you can come outside. It's your choice."

He walked out of the room but stopped, of course, right outside, and waited. Sure enough, less than a minute later Loki toddled after him. He gave Steve one of those ferocious scowls when he realized Steve was standing there waiting for him. Steve just smiled back and slowly walked down the hallway, pausing every couple of feet to let Loki catch up. 

He could tell by the happy shouts that Betty already had the toddlers outside. Steve pushed the door open and let Loki go out first before stepping out himself. Sure enough, he immediately spotted Bucky running around the sandbox. Tony noticed him too, letting out a happy squeal that caught Bucky's attention. Bucky beamed and raced over to them, throwing his arms around Steve's waist. Steve, having braced himself just in time, smiled down at him.

"Daddy! Tony!"

"Hi kiddo," Steve said. "Are you having fun?"

"Yeah! Miss Betty's the best!" Bucky said, vibrating with excitement. "Can Tony come play?"

"Sure he can. Just be careful with your little brother," Steve said, gently setting Tony down. Bucky grabbed Tony's hand and, patient as always with Tony's unsteady pace, slowly started moving towards the sandbox. Steve looked for Loki, realizing that Loki had already wandered away towards Darcy. He looked down at Peter, who gave him a hopeful smile. Steve nodded.

"How about those swings?"


	3. Chapter 3

While he was pushing Peter on the swing, Steve looked around the playground. Tony and Bucky were playing in the sandbox, close enough for him to intervene if something went wrong. Darcy was holding Loki’s hand, seemingly willing to be led wherever the baby wanted to go. Bruce, Clint, Scott and another toddler, which had to be the Peter that Betty had mentioned, were playing tag under Betty’s watchful eye. 

Peter apparently lost interest in the game, because he ran over to Steve. “Hi!” he beamed. 

“Hi,” Steve said with a grin.

“Push me too?”

“Sure.” Steve stepped to the right and started to pick the kid up, but Peter shook his head.

“No! I’m a big boy. I want to use the big boy swings!”

That sounded exactly like something Clint would say. Steve glanced doubtfully at the so-called ‘big boy’ swings. When they’d had the swings installed, Angie had made the decision to install two bucket-style infant swings and three children’s swings. They’d intended for the babies and toddlers to use the bucket-style swings for safety, which was what he’d lifted Peter into.

But Peter was staring at Steve with naked hope in his eyes, and Steve couldn’t bring himself to say no. He told himself that at least the ground under the swings was soft sand, so Peter wouldn’t hurt himself if he fell. He sighed and nodded, and was rewarded with an enormous smile. Steve grabbed the swing and held it so that Peter could back up to him and take a seat. 

“Make sure you hold on tight, okay Peter?” he said. Baby Peter turned his head and gurgled at the sound of his name.

Peter shot up, looking affronted. “That is not my name! I am Star Lord, a space thief!”

Steve’s mouth twitched. “A space thief?”

“That’s right. I travel the galaxy with my friends, Groot, Rocket, Drax and Gamora. We’re the Guardians of the Galaxy!” 

Groot, Rocket, Drax and Gamora? Based on those names, Steve honestly wondered if those were other Littles that Peter played with, or whether those were imaginary friends. He didn’t bother to ask, just smiled and did a half bow. “I didn’t realize I was in the presence of someone so grand. My apologies, Star Lord. Please tell me of your grand adventures!”

Peter grinned and finally sat on the swing, launching into a story of a spaceship that crashed on a planet with a name Steve couldn’t pronounce. He listened with half an ear as he alternated between gently pushing Peter and Baby Peter, focusing the rest of his attention on the other Littles. He’d learned pretty early on that, when it came to Littles, things could change on a dime.

“Hey Star Lord!” Clint bellowed, as though they weren’t all in a confined space. “Come play with us! We’re gonna build a fort!”

“Let’s build a spaceship!” Peter yelled, jumping off the swing. Steve’s heart stopped, but thankfully he hadn’t been pushing the swing very hard. Peter stumbled slightly, but caught his balance and took off running. Darcy, who was standing nearby with Loki, laughed.

“Relax, Steve. Littles are pretty resilient. They’re not all as delicate as your boys,” she said teasingly. Steve made a face at her, but knew she had a point. Tony in particular required a special touch because of his background, so Steve was free to fuss over him to his heart’s content and Tony _loved_ it. More than once, Bucky, Clint and Natasha had protested over how much of a mother hen he could be.

He grabbed the chain to slow Peter’s swing. “What are they playing?”

“I’m not sure,” Darcy said, turning her head to look. Bucky had left the sandbox and was running over to join his friends. The identical looks of mischief on all five faces made Steve’s stomach flip. Apparently Darcy felt the same way, because she began urging Loki to wander closer to them.

“Hey Pete, why don’t we go see what Tony is doing?” Steve said, scooping the baby up. He walked over to the sandbox and knelt, setting Peter down.

Tony looked up and smiled shyly. “Cas’le,” he said, pointing to his masterpiece. It was far more advanced than Steve himself would’ve been able to make, with four different towers and turrets on top of those, plus walls and even a small bridge. He had no idea how Tony could manipulate the sand that way, but it was very impressive.

“It’s beautiful,” Steve said sincerely, which earned him another smile. “Do you mind if Peter plays with you? Or would you rather do something else?”

“Sand?” Peter asked, pointing to the castle.

“Yeah, buddy, Tony and Bucky built that,” Steve said. “Why don’t we help?” He could tell Tony wasn’t ready to leave the sandbox, and it was easily big enough for Steve to shuffle Peter over a little bit and let him play while Tony kept building. 

Or at least, that was his intention – a big blue beach ball came soaring through the air ten minutes later. Steve had his head down, helping Peter to lift up a bucket full of sand, so he didn’t see the ball until he heard Tony cry out. His head snapped up and he stared at the ball sitting in the middle of what had been Tony’s sandcastle. Tony was looking at his destroyed creation in devastation.

Steve twisted, looking up, and saw the horrified faces of Bruce, Clint and Scott looking back. Clint was holding a red ball and Scott had the purple one, which meant that blue one had been Bruce’s. Steve was just opening his mouth when Tony let out a wail. That caught the attention of Betty, who’d been helping Peter and Bucky, and Darcy and Loki. Loki and Baby Peter both started crying, and then Bruce and Bucky began to cry, and even Clint and Scott were looking teary. Peter just looked bewildered.

“Wow, okay,” Darcy said, whirling around and looking at all the tears. “I think it’s lunch time. Who wants to be my helper?” 

“I do!” Clint said, throwing a hand up. Surprisingly, so did Loki, looking up at Darcy with a gaze that bordered on worship. Darcy smiled and scooped Loki up.

“Come on, you three,” she said to Clint, Scott and Peter. “You can help me, and we’ll have a picnic. Doesn’t that sound fun?”

“Picnic!” Peter yelled. “Race you!” He pointed at Clint and Scott and took off running. They raced after him.

Betty walked over, and over the sound of the crying, said, “I’ve got Bruce and Peter if you’ve got Tony and Bucky.”

“Of course,” Steve said, passing Peter to her. He beckoned to Bucky, who shuffled over. Steve figured he was crying more out of sympathy; Bucky was ferociously protective of his little brother and _hated_ it when Tony cried.

He picked Tony up and got out of the sandbox to sit down on the grass with his boys, pulling them into his lap. Tony clung to him and Bucky, sobbing. Steve rubbed his back, letting him cry it out. There was no point in saying anything until Tony was ready to listen, and he and Peggy had figured out a long time ago that sometimes Tony just needed to cry.

“I’ll help Tony fix the cas’le,” Bucky said, reaching out and grabbing one of Tony’s hands. 

Steve smiled proudly. “You’re such a good big brother, Buck,” he said. “Tony appreciates that a lot. Maybe you can help him after lunch.”

Bucky nodded, wiping at his tears. “We’ll make it even bigger n’ better,” he said, a hint of enthusiasm seeping into his voice. “We’ll make it taller than Daddy!”

Sniffing, Tony peeked out at him. “Big?” he asked softly.

“Real big,” Bucky confirmed. “And we’ll put sticks and stones on it for dec’ration, and it’ll be the bestest cas’le ever!”

Tony looked torn. “Cas’le bad?” he asked after a moment, looking at Steve.

Steve’s heart melted. “No, baby boy, castles aren’t bad. Bruce, Scott and Clint didn’t mean to make your castle disappear. They were playing and it got a bit out of hand. It was an _accident_ ,” he stressed, because it had taken them a long time to get the concept of accidents and why they weren’t bad into Tony’s head in the first place. “And I’m sure they’re really sorry. Right, Bruce?”

He’d noticed Bruce creeping closer to them, still looking a little teary but otherwise calmer. Betty winked at Steve and then pointed at Peter’s diaper. Steve nodded back and watched her cross the yard with Peter in her arms. Then he turned his attention back to Bruce. Out of all the Littles they knew, Tony adored Bucky the most. But Bruce was a pretty close seconds.

“I’m sorry,” Bruce whispered, wringing his hands. It came out sounding a lot closer to ‘sowwee’ and Steve had to bite his lip to keep a soppy smile off his face.

“Bruce sad?” Tony asked. “No sad.”

“I think that means you’re forgiven,” Steve said. As though to prove it, Tony uncurled the sandy hand he’d wound into Steve’s shirt and stuck it out for Bruce to take. Bruce smiled and took it, holding Tony’s hand tightly.

“Food now?” Bucky asked, apparently deciding that they were done with that, and Steve laughed.

“Yeah, honey, food now. Let’s see how Darcy is making out.”

They’d already decided that a lunch outside would be a great way to celebrate their first opening day. In short time, the yard was crammed with Littles. The good thing about it was that a lot of the older Littles like helping with the younger Littles. Steve watched Natasha come stalking across the yard, grab Clint and Bruce, and seclude them under the tree with a stack of sandwiches. Since all three of them were eating, he didn’t interfere.

“Mama!” Tony yelled, seeing Peggy come out, all traces of tears gone. Peggy walked over and took Tony. She settled down to feed him, which left Steve free to take and feed Peter. Darcy, unsurprisingly, had Loki in her lap and was talking to Bucky while poking bits of food into Loki’s mouth.

It was a good system. Or at least, Steve thought it was until he heard the unmistakable sound of paint cans being knocked over. His heart stopped and he spun around to see that three of the big kids had gotten into the construction zone. Sam’s workers had all left for lunch, with only Sam himself remaining behind to join them and Scott for lunch. Steve watched green paint slowly spread across the wooden deck that had literally _just_ been finished and felt his heart sink.

This was gonna cost a lot.

“Oh my,” Sam said, walking up to Steve. Jane, who handled the Big Kids room, had already dashed over. “That looks like a mess.”

“Sam, I am so sorry,” Steve said. “We’ll pay you for the paint and the extra work, I swear.”

Sam laughed. “Didn’t Angie tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

“We bought that paint for the Littles to use, Steve. Angie thought a personal touch was needed. I’m not painting that deck; they are.” He laughed harder at Steve’s expression. “All the Littles came in today wearing old clothing that could be ruined. Didn’t you notice?”

“I… not really?” Steve said. Now that he thought about it, Bucky and Tony had been wearing t-shirts and pants that he hadn’t seen for a while. Peggy had been the one who’d gotten them dressed, though. Steve had been put in charge of having breakfast on the table at a decent time. He looked around, realizing that all of the Littles were wearing clothes in a similar state.

Sam clapped him on the shoulder. “Those three were just a little eager, that’s all.”

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me,” Steve said to Peggy as she joined them.

Peggy grinned. “Now, love, where’s the fun in that?” she asked. “Take Tony. Go get your hands messy.”

Steve obeyed, clutching Tony in one hand and Peter in the other. Now that the paint was out, food was forgotten. Everywhere he looked were Littles with red hands, pink hands, purple hands, green hands, blue hands: Sam had bought a rainbow of colors, and every Little at the daycare was excitedly shoving their hands against the wood to make hand prints or making designs. Angie and Jane were standing over them, looking like they wanted to laugh at the chaos.

“Paint?” Peter said, hands opening and closing in eagerness.

“Yeah, buddy. Let’s pain,” Steve said, setting them both down and grabbing a can of red paint. It was waterproof, but the side of the can promised easy removal from skin with the application of soap and water. It was also, he was relieved to see, non toxic. 

Tony shoved his hands in the can first and laughed with glee as the paint slashed up on his shirt. He pulled his hands out so Peter could do the same, showing them to Steve. Steve smiled at him and put his own hand in a can of blue paint, then pressed it to the deck rail. It left a perfect impression of his blue hand that Tony and Peter looked at in wonder.

“Go ahead,” Steve reassured them; they’d both been taught not to draw on anything other than paper, so there were some uncertain glances at first – but those quickly faded, and soon the two of them were having the time of their lives. Steve looked around, noticing Bucky, Clint, Bruce, Peter and Scott were having a paint war, and that Natasha was carefully drawing a flower, and that Loki was drawing a messy figure that looked suspiciously like Thor.

He smiled to himself. There was no doubt in his heart that he and Peggy had made the right decision.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](http://tsuki-chibi.tumblr.com/).


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